AN adventurer hoping to be the youngest woman to ski solo to the South Pole has revealed her novel fundraising plan – pledging to get a tattoo on her bottom for a £15,000 donation.
Edinburgh-based Mollie Hughes is already a record breaker, having become the youngest female to successfully climb both the north and south sides of Everest, the world’s highest mountain, aged 26.
Now 29, she is preparing for a solo trek across Antarctica, hauling a 90kg sled on the 702-mile journey in temperatures of around -50C.
Only six women and 17 men have successfully completed the trip she is planning without making any stops to resupply.
She has already raised £60,000 in funding for the challenge but still needs to another £15,000 before October. She has pledged to get a tattoo on the cheek of her bottom if someone donates that amount.
Hughes already has a tattoo of two kissing chickens on her right bottom cheek after a similar auction to raise funds for an Everest climb.
Devon-born Hughes said: “I auctioned my bum back in 2011 for my Everest expedition and, while my dad wasn’t best pleased, it helped me raise the money I needed. I’m now eight years older and eight years wiser, therefore my left bum cheek is going to be auctioned off for no less than £15,000.
“The winning bidder can have any tattoo they want on it, anything at all. This is how much I want to go to Antarctica.”
She said she hoped her expedition would “help inspire women of all ages to push their comfort zones and realise what they are capable of”.
Hughes added: “I’m going to try to ski alone and unsupported across 702 miles of the world’s largest desert.
“It’s an immense physical and mental challenge but gaining sponsorship to help fund my expeditions is always the biggest hurdle I face.”
The explorer will set off from the UK in mid-November and hopes to return in early January – with plans for a speaking tour about her adventure after that.
Donations can be made at her online crowd funding appeal at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/make-history-with-mollie-hughes-antarctica-2019-1
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